M61A1

I wouldn’t use it for locking wheel retaining nuts, if you are talking about a single centre nut attaching the wheel to the axle because if the bearings seize up or grab for any reason the rotation of the wheel may undo the nut, but I would use it to attach a wheel to a hub with studs if I thought they might vibrate loose.

Like Nev says, you wouldn’t use lockwire in that situation. That’s a job for a split pin, self locking nut or both. A lot of flight control bolts have both nylon and a split pin. F111 ones had a ball locking device that was operated when to pushed an Allen key in to drive it and a split pin which both prevented the nut from turning and the ball loch being actuated.

I have seen the three bolts that hold the lower engine mount on the accessory case of a C250 installed on a Bell 206 loose and only held by the lockwire. Whether they were never torqued on installation, had worn inserts or came loose during operation I will never know, but I can tell you that when the lockwire was removed, the bolts were easily removed with fingers.

Maybe try it the other way....Get rid of all the unnecessary crap on cars designed to protect stupid people. Put a six inch spike in the centre of the steering wheel and watch how carefully they drive then. Maybe big spikes on barriers too so that if they depart the road they will pierce the vehicle. Start learners with a compulsory period on a moped with no mirrors. They'll learn to look after themselves or die, without killing anyone else, and maybe their parents might be encouraged to remove their own heads from their sphincters while driving. Win/win.....gets rid of those that shouldn't be breeding and helps reduce the population of the planet. BTW: there's only one reason you get your mirror taken off by a motorcyclist

The aircraft I work on use loctite in a lot of places. I think the only alternative would be to lockwire the fitting. Some parts in high vibration areas us a lock washer and loctite along with a helicoil that has a built in locking medium. I don't like those ones much, as a hamfisted tradie can drag the helicoil out with the bolt. Some hydraulic fittings also use loctite on the B nut. The stuff is very effective. The ones on the hyd fittings for example, will fight you the whole way when you are undoing them and then clean up really easily.

A good quality auto darkening welding helmet can be got around $100. I have a reasonable $60 WIA one, which was great for most stuff, but wouldn’t reliably darken when TIG welding thin stainless at very low amps. So I bought a $120 one with four sensors instead of two and it works fine. Even the cheap ones have adjustable shades and sensitivity.

Or....I'm OK with fly by wire, as long as it's 7 x 19.

I worry about the sort of bureaucrats that make lists like that......Only a couple of those things ever had any relevance. For example , tailgating, while it apparently annoys a lot of people, is not usually fatal. Poor maintenance is rarely a factor also, similarly in aviation. If weather is an issue, you can probably lump that in with inexperience/ inattention. I foresee crashes occurring on the new Toowoomba range crossing. Long sections of nice wide smooth road, limited to 90k's and average speed cameras will have drivers falling asleep. The only mitigating factor is that it's divided by a concrete barrier so at least they won't veer into oncoming traffic. But when it happens, I bet they lower the limit further. It's still happening. I think it's a currency thing as well as experience. New Harleys are more likely purchased by lawyers and such these days. They do their course that allows them to ride the larger bikes, they have the training , but not the experience. They aren't hard to pick, just by their riding style. I think the importance of currency is underestimated, whether you're on a bike, a car or an aircraft. I used to ride about two hours every day, but now maybe once a week, and I can really feel the difference. I now fly more than I ride and I can pick the difference if I've been out of the cockpit for a couple of weeks.

I has a relative who worked for DPI on the Fire Ant issue. It was meant to be a short term contract while they quickly eradicated them. I get the impression that most of them realised they wouldn't have a job if they actually eradicated the Fire Ants (relative included).

I did say "most", but see if you can find a recent enquiry that you didn't already know what the outcome would be.

Like most enquiries, you will get an answer that everyone already knew and we'll be much poorer and selected experts and lawyers will be much richer.

There's your problem...... No government organisation can ever do anything as cost effectively as a private one. Mind you...if the bill is being paid with someone else's money, you probably don't care.

At last something I can completely agree with.

You don't suppose it might be simpler to make sure populated areas are adequately clear of combustible material, as people used to do, instead of fining people who do that? There's nothing unprecedented about these fires except for the media hype. Even the ABC seems to have very short memory ( not that that's any real surprise) , as I recall hearing them discuss the likelihood of extreme danger of fire in the future after the last good wet season.

For the personnel , perhaps..... for the aircraft operating hours (the most expensive bit).....NOPE As an aside, I would be interested to know just how much money they've thrown at trying to extinguish/control fires in the last couple of months and whether or not it might just have been less expensive just to move people out and let it burn and then compensate them for loss.

If you’re worried about that then you don’t want the military in there....

If it was the same Zenith as the previous incident, it may well have been the lack of aileron response when slow. I found standard ailerons on the 601HD to a bit lacking especially when slow.

I'd reckon those contract Ag Pilots aren't doing everything with a 5 x 5 risk matrix. Since the ADF took up civilian style OH&S things have got much worse for your average military aviator. I don't think most of them would have a problem doing it, just that no one wants to put their name on the document that approved it in case things go tits up.

Clearly, you have no idea how the ADF certification process works. "Plug and Play" might work if they had previously acquired the equipment, tested and trained in it's use. Clearly they have not. Assumptions are the mother of all F*ckups

The ARH Tigers were also mobilised a couple of weeks ago from Rockhampton down to Ballina Generally flying at night when the firebombers weren't. Using their thermal imaging overlaid on digital maps in real time to provide firefighters with accurate and current information. None of the military aircraft are set up for firefighting, and to do so would take mountains of paperwork, and engineers years to complete the modifications necessary not to mention the necessary training and accreditation. They are already set up to extract people from tight places like flooded areas, so apples and oranges comparison. Yes, they should be able to assist with any emergency, but if you can't do anything to help, you're better off out of the way. Why not set up the trusty Zephyr for firebombing and get out there.

Maybe it’s a shame the Germans lost WWII. They had fuel injection in the 30s.

I only know because I’ve done it myself. Make enough mistakes and you get to be an expert. ?

A few things to check on a Bing... vent tube location is important is the stackup between the main jet and needle jet in the right order? It’s possible to put bits in upside down. Is the diaphragm spring correctly seated and not bent up? is the diaphragm and slide in the correct location? You will notice a little alignment lug on the diaphragm that sits in a little rectangular socket. Does the needle and slide move smoothly in the bore?

Yes there is something special about the rotax thread. It's metric, not BSP and it seals using a copper washer under the flange.

Just wondering if anyone has an old 912 fuel pump laying around. I don't want the pump, but am after the screw in inlet fitting with the hose tail on it. Happy to pay reasonable price and shipping. PM if you've got anything you want to part with.